Chicago showing off pride for homegrown pontiff "Da Pope" Leo XIV
In true Chicago fashion, Chicagoans are proudly showing their pride for our hometown pope, and White Sox fans are relishing in the fact he's Team Southpaw.
Pope Leo XIV's brother set the record straight on Thursday, saying the new pontiff is a longtime White Sox fan, meaning a lot of new Cubs apparel from Obvious Shirts in Wrigleyville isn't going to work.
"We were getting a lot of different feedback about if he was a Cubs fan or if he was a Sox fan. First thing we heard and everything we saw was he was a Cubs fan," said Obvious Shirts general manager Colin Hopkinson.
No matter. The store's prayers for a papal profit have been answered with orders for their "Da Pope" Bears-themed shirt.
"Today, we've gotten a lot; close to 100," Hopkinson said.
The White Sox's holiest fan was all the talk among fans on Friday, as the South Side beamed with pride over their hometown pontiff.
"As long as he's not a Cubs fan, everything is good in the world," Sox fan Magali Mercado said.
After some back and forth on Thursday about which Chicago baseball team the new pope roots for, those questions should officially be put to rest after video surfaced of then-Rev. Robert Prevost rooting on the White Sox in the 2005 World Series.
"The pope is obviously a leader for all people, so we are willing to share him," White Sox senior vice president of community relations Christine O'Reilly said. "White Sox fans, especially, what a sense of pride we all felt, and joy."
The White Sox embraced Pope Leo XIV as their own with a custom "Pope Leo 14" jersey, and a scoreboard message for the pontiff before Friday night's game against the Miami Marlins.
"There's going to have to be a lot of praying for the White Sox to win," Sox fan Javier Rodriguez said.
Long before he was pope, Robert Prevost was seen cheering on the White Sox in Game 1 of the 2005 World Series at what was then called U.S. Cellular Field.
"I think we all want the pope on our side, so I certainly understand, but yeah, I'm glad he chose the right team," White Sox manager Will Venable said.
Having the new pope be a White Sox fan gave a much-needed shot in the arm for White Sox fans, with their team off to another dismal start, and on pace for a third consecutive 100-loss season.
"We needed a little boost. We needed a little pride factor," O'Reilly said.
The White Sox said they didn't think they could top having former President Obama as a fan, but said the pope now takes it to a global level.
The team got another morale boost by beating the Marlins 6-2 on Friday, ending a four-game losing streak.
Meantime, plenty of Pope Leo merchandise is selling like hotcakes, including pope cookies at Bennison's Bakery in Evanston.
Is customer Victoria Zilenski going to actually eat hers?
"Hell no, I'm going to put them up and save them forever. Of course I'm going to eat the cookies!" she said.
Bakers at Bennison's whipped up 300 of the tasty treats.
"The tray was out a little bit ago; had to go refill them. So we've got more in the back," one worker said.
Other Chicago brands, like Garrett Popcorn and Lou Malnati's, also are joining the fun.
Portillo's popped out "The Leo," a special Italian Beef sandwich, as its papal offering.
The Wieners Circle also chimed in with a new message on their ever-changing sign: Canes Nostros Ipse Comedit, which translates to "He has eaten our dogs."
Then there's the people behind Malort, who joked that a box of Chicago's famous wormwood drink is being shipped to the Vatican. We don't suppose anyone's asked Pope Leo XIV's liquor preference just yet.
"What's important is he's from Chicago, and we all love Chicago," Hopkinson said.
White Sox representatives said they've sent a team jersey and hat to Rome. It's unclear if they plan to honor the new pope in any other way at Friday night's game against the Miami Marlins.
